Battle of Doria
|place=Doria Starzone |result=Imperial victory |side1= Galactic Empire |side2= Free Planets Alliance |commanders1=Kornelias I Viktor von Auffenberg |commanders2=James Wellington |forces1=94,000 ships |forces2=47,000 ships |casual1=20,000 ships |casual2=31,000 ships }} The Battle of Doria was the second engagement in Kaiser Kornelias I's campaign to conquer the Free Planets Alliance, which also included the Battle of Gandharva, Battle of Heinessen, and First Battle of El Facil. Orders of Battle Imperial Order of Battle The Imperial order of battle was as follows: *'Supreme HQ Fleet', Fleet Admiral Viktor von Auffenberg *'Tirpitz Fleet', Fleet Admiral August von Tirpitz *'Radetz Fleet', Fleet Admiral Wilhelm von Radetz *'Wittelsbach Fleet', Fleet Admiral Fedor von Wittelsbach *'Schmitt Fleet', Fleet Admiral Paul Schmitt *'Driscoll Fleet', Fleet Admiral Konrad Driscoll *'Westarp Fleet', Fleet Admiral Bruno von Westarp *'Hochstaden Fleet', Fleet Admiral Hans-Georg von Hochstaden *'Göttingen Fleet', Fleet Admiral Friedrich von Göttingen *'Bremer Fleet', Fleet Admiral Martin Bremer It totaled approximately 94,000 ships. Alliance Order of Battle The Alliance order of battle was as follows. *'Supreme HQ Fleet', Admiral James Wellington *'1st Fleet', Vice Admiral Eduardo Nunda *'2nd Fleet', Vice Admiral John Malcolm *'7th Fleet', Vice Admiral Nikola Velic *'9th Fleet', Vice Admiral Mark Nardini *'11th Fleet', Vice Admiral Simon Corbett *'Replacement Fleet', Rear Admiral Hendrik van der Heim It had around 47,000 vessels. The Replacement Fleet consisted of survivors of the fleets almost completely destroyed at Gandharva (3rd, 4th, 8th, and 10th) as well as old and new ships that were scrambled together by the Joint Operations HQ. The battle Having been defeated at Gandharva and taking 75% casualties, the remaining Alliance ships regrouped at the Doria Starzone. They were joined by the 1st, 5th, and 6th Fleets, which were being held in reserve, along with scattered groups of older and newer vessels which were called up to defend the capital. The Imperial force arrived several days later, and the battle began at 13:10 on 5 September . Admiral James Wellington, Alliance chief space fleet commander, intended to delay the Empire's advance as much as possible while inflicting as much damage as possible. Despite the casualties the Empire sustained at the Battle of Gandharva, the Alliance's force was still only half as large. As the fighting began, Wellington concentrated fire at the Imperial center, dealing considerable casualties to it and killing several Imperial fleet admirals in the process; most notably Friedrich von Göttingen and Martin Bremer. At 22:45, the Alliance fleet charged forward in an attempt to rip open the Imperial center and attack the Supreme HQ Fleet, which had the Imperial chief fleet commander, Fleet Admiral Viktor von Auffenberg, as well as Kaiser Kornelias I himself. However, reinforcements from the left and right flanks brought the offensive to a halt around 23:50. A couple hours later, on September 6, the Alliance fleet suddenly withdrew from the gap, moving away from the Imperial Fleet. Auffenberg took the time to reorganize his formation and assess the casualties. Wellington did the same. In total, 8,000 Imperial ships were destroyed, along with 6,000 Alliance vessels. Among the dead was Alliance Vice Admiral Simon Corbett, commander of the 11th Fleet. Fighting resumed around 11:30 that day, with the Alliance again attempting to break through to the Imperial Supreme HQ Fleet, with the objective of destroying the Supreme Flagship, the Goeben. However, the attempt failed earlier than before, due to the presence of additional forces in the Imperial center. The Alliance fleet withdrew at 16:40, after sustaining losses of 12,000 ships (the Empire, meanwhile, lost 9,000 vessels). Fleet Admiral Auffenberg planned to end the battle with an encirclement, annihilating the Alliance force, and reorganized his formation after the second offensive. Although the casualties sustained were almost even, the Alliance had less ships to begin with and thus was losing the war of attrition. Extensive planning beforehand by Imperial Admiral Wilhelm von Radetz, the chief of the High Command Office, kept the Empire's fleet well supplied, and so the troops could continue to carry on the fight. Wellington was preparing a new plan when, at 01:24 on September 7, the Imperials struck, with Hans-Georg von Hochstaden leading the assault. The center attacked head on while the Imperial right and left flanks attempted to envelop the Alliance Fleet. Wellington, not having the strength to stop all three attacks, initially only engaged the center. However, when the enemy plan became obvious, he attempted to withdraw. The Alliance ships formed a diamond formation, with damaged ships in the center, and concentrated at one point in the Imperial line. They managed to break through, and, although taking heavy losses, were able to escape. Wellington only had 16,000 ships remaining after fighting within the encirclement and breaking out, heading to Heinessen to make a last ditch defense of the capital. The Empire did not follow immediately, stopping to assess the damage and reorganize the fleet. Aftermath In total, the Alliance lost over half of its force, with total casualties approximately amounting to 31,000 ships. The Empire's losses were about 20,000 vessels. The Alliance was defeated but not completely beaten, preparing a battle for Heinessen, the capital, while Kornelias and his staff celebrated in advance what they assumed would be final victory. On 10 September , the Imperial Fleet headed of to its destination. Doria